Partner exercises are a great way to add fun and interest to traditional exercises, while also creating a more stimulating environment. Check out these great partner exercises, which can be used in both your individual and group-training programs.

Compound exercises such as the Romanian deadlift and the Turkish get-up are super efficient for producing strength gains. Learn how to combine some of the most effective compound exercises (all of which were recently featured in ACE ProSource), in a workout program that is sure to produce incredible results.

On those days when you make it to the gym only to find that all of your favorite equipment is being used, you can take comfort in knowing that you can still get a great workout with this medicine ball circuit.

When it comes to swinging a golf club, most people think the arm muscles do the majority of the work, but it’s actually the gluteal muscle group that plays the biggest role in all aspects of the golf swing. Read on to learn how to help your golfing clients improve their game.

ACE technology expert Ted Vickey examines the use of activity trackers and other fitness wearables by children and offers advice to parents and health and fitness professionals on how to most effectively utilize these health and fitness technologies.

Testosterone is an anabolic steroid responsible for promoting the repair and growth of muscle proteins. Currently, there are a lot of half-truths out there regarding low testosterone levels among men and how to raise them. To help clarify some of the misinformation being propagated, here is what you need to know about low-T and what you can do about it in the gym.

Many standing strength, balance and cardiovascular exercises also enhance core strength and stability, while also allowing the body to move in various planes of motion. Here are six standing core stabilizer exercises that can be used in a variety of personal training and group exercise programs to effectively challenge both the core and the entire body.

Developing core strength involves incorporating a variety of different exercises that target different areas of the core. While there are numerous ways to strengthen the core, it is essential to keep it simple. These six key core-strengthening exercises, which require no equipment and can be performed at home, provide a good basic routine for just about anyone.

Boot-camp classes present a great opportunity to facilitate a sense of camaraderie among your participants. Through team-building activities, participants focus on problem-solving, developing relationships and honoring everyone’s unique qualities and perspectives, all while working toward a common goal or completing a task. Here are four team-building activities you can use to help unite any group to exercise and work together.

Warming up the spine before getting out of bed can help clients go about their activities of daily living in a more productive, less painful way. The following routine, which is appropriate for clients who have no contraindications or special issues like osteoporosis, provides a sound biomechanical start to the day.

The human body is an amazing machine, and when it works the way it is supposed to, that machine gets really strong, mobile and lean. Take a break from counting reps and setting timers and re-focus on coaching clients to mastery on three simple, “familiar” moves: the push-up, squat and basic breathing.

Strong glutes are vital for both life and sport. Unfortunately, dysfunctions elsewhere in the body can create problems in the glutes and hips. The following exercises are designed to help offset dysfunction in the glutes by increasing lateral and pelvic stability and eccentric control, and generating power through extension.

Boot camps are now at an all-time high in popularity, which isn’t surprising given how fun and effective these classes can be. If you’re thinking about starting a boot-camp class, or if you feel your boot-camp classes could use a little inspiration, here are some great tips from some of the best in the business.

You don’t get better when you work out; you get better by recovering from a workout, and foam rolling is a highly effective way to hydrate your muscles and help them recover and rebuild. ACE pro Jonathan Ross explains why foam rolling is so effective and presents five movements that will increase blood flow and relieve those tender spots.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) continues to be extremely popular, but many programs are too challenging for beginning exercisers. The key to designing HIIT programs for beginning clients is to start simple and gradually progress to more complex movement patterns. Here is a sample workout and some basic guidelines for creating safe and effective HIIT programs for your new participants and clients.

Many people consider the squat to be the king of all exercise moves, because it effectively works so many muscles of the body. Plus, there are numerous variations of the basic squat, which you can use with your clients to recruit different muscles and help stave off boredom. In addition to the basic body-weight squat, here are five squat variations to add to your exercise arsenal.

Plyometrics are explosive exercises that increase speed, quickness and power. Most exercises include “jumping,” in which the muscles exert maximal effort and force in short bouts or intervals of time. These advanced plyometrics exercises offer three levels of difficulty, which can be incorporated, as appropriate, into a client’s training program.

Yoga is a great way to counterbalance the areas most fatigued or tightened by running—the hips, hamstrings and calves—and helps your body recover from your efforts. This yoga sequence hits all those areas and includes some essential core work as well.

Knowing how to create a movement-training matrix can help you design effective programs that will help your clients perform successful movement patterns in all three planes of motion. Learn how to take a single exercise and alter it to initiate movement in all three planes, and how to use a matrix to program and coach multiplanar movement patterns.

Squatting is a foundational movement that most of us perform every day without even thinking about it. And yet this exercise can be a challenge for some people. Learn how to help your clients master the basic body-weight squat before progressing to more challenging moves that will strengthen the muscles of the lower body and improve their ability to perform this foundational movement.

While all exercise provides general health benefits, doing resistance training with heavy weights is one of the quickest ways to achieve a wide range of health and appearance benefits. Learn more about these benefits and how you can help your clients achieve them through heavy-resistance training.

It can be a challenge to come up with new ways to help your clients safely and effectively achieve their strength goals. Here’s a technique that originated in the former Soviet Union that has proven extremely effective: lifting just five reps at a time. Check out this 5 x 5 workout that can help improve both strength and, when combined with proper skills practice, sport-specific performance as well.

You’ve just started a new workout routine or you reached a new PR with your current program and you’re feeling sore—really sore. What’s the best way to approach your recovery—being completely inactive or performing active recovery? ACE pro Jonathan Ross explains the differences between passive and active recovery and offers guidelines on how to effectively prepare for your next workout.

Trainers who are neither vegans or vegetarians—but train clients who are—may be concerned about their clients’ dietary choices and whether these will affect how they respond to exercise. Here is a basic primer on plant-based eating that can help you understand the specific needs of your vegan and vegetarian clients—and better help them reach their health and fitness goals.

Stability and mobility are essential to avoiding injury and creating a balanced body that moves efficiently. This second installment of a two-part series on how to improve stability and mobility throughout the body focuses on exercises for the lower body, including the hips, knees, ankles and feet.

Active seniors are dramatically changing what it means to grow older. And exercise—for both the mind and body—plays a huge role in how active those later years can be. In the second installment of his two-part series, ACE Certified pro Lawrence Biscontini offers some of his favorite exercises for helping active aging clients improve both their physical and mental activities of daily life.

Ready to get a whole-body, heart-pumping workout that increases cardio and strength and boosts metabolism—all in the most efficient way possible? Check out this high-intensity interval training (HIIT) circuit that will help you burn lots of calories and put your metabolism in high gear well after your workout is over.

Strong glutes are essential for being able to move well, in both life and sport. And while we need to be able to move in all planes of motion, glute exercises like walking lunges and squats focus primarily on sagittal plane movements. Here are six multiplanar drills that are extremely effective for increasing mobility and building power and strength, while also creating strong, shapely glutes.

If you are interested in designing exercise programs that produce results, you must have a good understanding of how muscle fibers work and respond to exercise. Here are 10 important facts about muscle fibers and how they are affected by exercise that will improve your effectiveness as a trainer and help your clients achieve their fitness goals.

Movement preparation, also referred to as a dynamic warm-up, involves moving in a variety of directions at different speeds to help activate the tissues along with the nervous, circulatory and respiratory systems responsible for controlling and fueling movement. Learn how to use movement preparation as an effective and functional way to prepare the body for a tough and physically demanding workout.

Heavy ropes have become hugely popular in recent years—and for good reason. Heavy ropes make it possible to get a full-body workout that incorporates all the primary movement patterns with just one piece of equipment. ACE pro Jonathan Ross developed this super-efficient heavy ropes workout, which features both traditional and novel movements that are sure to engage and challenge your clients.

Do you ever see people doing exercises that leave you shaking your head, wondering why in the world they would do that? ACE Certified pro Jonathan Ross sees this all too often and urges trainers to remember the foundational principles of exercise science. Here are 5 exercises trainers should never do because the risks simply outweigh the rewards.

If you are looking for a way to help your clients increase strength and conditioning, and take on a new challenge, double kettlebell complexes are a versatile and effective approach. This workout video from ACE pro Erik Blekeberg featuring double kettlebell exercises is ideal for helping clients break through strength plateaus and increase caloric expenditure by increasing the total load on the body.

Planks are incredibly effective, strengthening the core, arms, shoulders, glutes and legs. And when you move beyond the basic plank, by lifting an arm or adding movement, you can dramatically increase the challenge of the exercise. Here are five plank variations that focus on lifting the legs and adding rotation to intensity the work.

Workout programs don’t need to be overly complicated to be effective—they just need to execute the fundamental principles of exercise really well. This basic strength workout, which can be adjusted to focus on hypertrophy or calorie burning, uses offset hand and foot positions to add movement variability, which helps create stronger, more injury-resistant muscle and connective tissue.

If your clients are looking to improve their athletic performance, post-activation potentiation (PAP), commonly referred to as complex training, is an effective approach. This program focuses on improving both muscular strength and power, and can be performed in sets or as a circuit.

Once again, we are reviewing some common exercise selections and identifying which ones may not be the safest option for helping your clients achieve their goals. Here are some potentially dangerous leg exercises and along with better options for a safer and more effective replacement.

Did you know that a daily gym session may not be enough to protect people from our sedentary culture? We need to be more active throughout the day to avoid the hazards of too much sitting. April 1st is National Walking Day—a perfect time to use these tips to inspire your clients to add more activity to their days by walking.

While many people have ditched their cardio sessions in favor of building stronger muscles, endurance training plays an important role in a well-rounded exercise program. The good news, ACE Certified pro Jonathan Ross explains, is that there’s no need to do the long, boring, steady-state training of yesterday. Using modern, intelligent approaches to interval training gleans the most out of a minimum investment of time while still providing the benefits of aerobic training.

If you want to avoid those dreaded fitness plateaus, you need to give your body new demands and stimuli. Fortunately, you don’t have to change your entire workout. By adding small challenges, such as jumping or rotation, or by changing body position, these exercise swaps will kick up the intensity of your existing program.

While the side plank is an effective exercise, it’s always a good idea to add variety to your workouts and challenge your body in new ways. Check out these five exercises that are great alternatives to the side plank.

While there is no single right way to train clients who are overweight or have obesity, using regressions can be an effective method to employ. Functional resistance training and training for daily activities is an ideal method to ensure clients connect their exercise gains with life movements. The key is to utilize “precursor” exercises, like the ones presented here, which benefit coordination, stability, mobility and motor control.

Some of the simplest exercises are often the most valuable. Compound exercises, for example, address many actions at once, making them both efficient and effective. Here are five of the best compound exercises to add to your workout.

Flow is a concept commonly associated with yoga, but have you ever tried sequencing strength, balance and flexibility moves all together, without any breaks or pauses? Check out this innovative flow routine created by ACE Certified pro Elizabeth Andrews that features the TRX Suspension Trainer.

Active seniors are dramatically changing what it means to grow older. And exercise—for both the mind and body—plays a huge role in how active those later years can be. ACE Certified pro Lawrence Biscontini offers some of his favorite exercises for helping active aging clients improve both their physical and mental activities of daily life.

Not all exercises are created equal. Sure, there are many exercises that are effective, but they can pose a greater risk of injury for some people, especially those who don’t have the mobility or strength to safely complete them. Here are five exercises to consider avoiding—and some safer options for building strength safely and effectively.

With so many opportunities to overindulge during the holidays, it might be a good idea to amp up your workouts a bit to help compensate for all those extra calories. These metabolic drills take traditional exercises like shuttle runs and squat jumps and up the intensity and challenge.

BOSU® Balance Trainers are a standard piece of equipment in most gyms, and their versatility allows for their inclusion in multiple workouts and exercises. These five exercises take advantage of the instability of the balance trainer, requiring you to actively engage multiple muscles and providing an effective core workout.

The thoracic spine—that space above the lumbar spine and below the cervical spine—is meant to be mobile. When we lack mobility in this region, pain and discomfort are often the result. This series of six exercises, which can be used in both group and personal training settings, are designed to improve movement and enhance motor control in the thoracic spine.

Do you skimp on your flexibility training? You’re not alone, as flexibility training continues to be one of the most overlooked aspects of most people’s fitness programs. While there is much debate regarding the impact of stretching on sports performance, particularly running, current research suggests there are some crucial do’s and don’t when it comes to this essential component of a well-rounded workout routine.

While it’s easy to understand why athletes would spend time working on speed and agility, is this type of training important for non-athletes as well? The answer is yes, and it stems from the need to perform daily functions with ease and confidence. These drills, developed by ACE Certified pro Sabrena Merrill, will help your clients develop better balance, coordination and quickness, and bring a sense of fun and playfulness to their workouts.

The holiday season can present a gauntlet of temptations and challenges for clients trying to stick to their healthy lifestyle goals. Fortunately, exercising before a big holiday meal offers the body numerous benefits. Learn how to advise your clients to choose the right kind of exercise to make it easier to control hunger during holiday meals.

Wondering how you can help your clients stay active during the always-hectic holidays? Share this workout with your clients before the holiday season to help them burn off those extra calories while getting a total-body challenge. This 20-minute, at-home body-weight circuit is just what they need to stay motivated and continue making progress toward their health and fitness goals.

Strong and well-developed glutes not only look great, but can help protect the lower back from injury during daily activities and sports. Biomechanics expert Justin Price demonstrates several eccentric strengthening exercises that can help develop great-looking glutes and a pain-free lower back.

We are so grateful to the brave men and women who serve at home and around the world, who have sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy. Not only are we grateful for your service, we are inspired by your commitment to fitness. The following military-inspired plank workout was created by ACE Salute You Scholarship recipient, Valetta SuRae, an Army veteran and ACE Certified Personal Trainer.

More than 29 million Americans have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, which means at some point in your career you will likely work with clients who suffer from this chronic disease. In recognition of National Diabetes Month, we spoke with ACE pro Jacqueline Sinke, who shares detailed information about her Diabetes Intervention and Prevention (DIP) Exercise Program, and explains how you can create effective exercise programs for your clients with diabetes.

November is National Diabetes Month and, given the increasing prevalence of this disease, it is essential that fitness professionals understand how to design safe and effective exercise programs that take into account the unique needs of those with diabetes. Here are five things that every fitness professional should know about diabetes.

Many people have found relief from chronic back pain by regular performing Pilates exercises. Here are 10 moves that, when practiced regularly, can help improve posture and strengthen the support structures that take pressure off the lower back.

ACE Certified pro Elizabeth Andrews explains the importance of building and maintaining power—at every age—and offers a challenging workout focusing on explosive power using the TRX Rip Trainer, TRX Suspension Trainer and Ultimate Sandbags.

Chronically tight hips not only can make certain yoga poses difficult to perform, they can also be the cause of major discomfort, particularly in the lower back and legs. This BOSU workout is designed to make hip-opening yoga postures easier to perform, while also reducing tightness in the hips.

There are so many positives that come from strength training, especially as we age. ACE Certified pro Elizabeth Andrews describes some of the benefits she has personally experienced from strength training, and shares the success she has enjoyed for more than three decades.

Excited about the new iPhone 6 and the Apple Watch? ACE Chief Science Officer Cedric X. Bryant, Ph.D., attended Apple’s launch event earlier this month and shares his thoughts on how the Apple Watch will affect health and fitness professionals.

There’s no question that mobility is essential to being able to move and perform well, whether in sports or in life. But it can be a challenge to stay focused on doing basic mobility exercises, so ACE Certified pro Elizabeth Andrews created these strength and mobility exercises using the TRX Suspension Trainer. These fun and creative exercises also challenge strength and stability in all planes of motion, so you can get more done in less time.

Circuit training is a great way to get a fast and effective workout, but the endless variations and combinations of exercises can make it difficult to know what type of circuit is right for you and your clients. Here are a few tips for setting up the best circuit to match specific fitness goals.

Still need a reason to start strength training? We’ve got 10 for you, from greater independence to better moods. Learn why strength training offers women a wide range of benefits that you’d be hard pressed to achieve any other way.

Squats are an excellent way to increase lower-body strength and appearance, but can be a difficult exercise to learn how to do correctly. If you are interested in strengthening your hips and developing an appealing backside, but want to reduce your risk of injury, try these six exercises that can help you achieve the results you want.

The technology and fitness worlds are buzzing as Apple gears up for a new announcement regarding the iPhone 6, iOS8 and the closely guarded Apple iWatch. Combined with Apple’s previously announced HealthKit, these products are poised to have a major impact on the health and fitness industries. Fitness technology expert Ted Vickey explains how personal trainers and health coaches can reap huge benefits from these new technologies.

Just like a car’s engine takes a while too cool off after a long trip, your metabolism can continue to burn more calories after a high-intensity workout then when at complete rest. This physiological effect is called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC. ACE Certified pro Pete McCall explains seven things you should know about EPOC and how it can help you and your clients achieve optimal levels of calorie burning from your workouts.

Functional fitness isn’t just a fitness concept, it’s an essential component of living a healthy, active life. It’s also the newest addition to the ACE Integrated Fitness TrainingTM (ACE IFTTM) Model. Here are some great functional exercises you can add to your clients’ current workout routines as part of a dynamic warm-up or, if your client is new to exercise, start with these to begin developing his or her stability and mobility, while also gently increasing heart rate.

Strong, toned glutes not only look good, they are key to maintaining balance and moving well, whether your main activity is walking or competing in triathlons. Here are six great moves that will help lift and strengthen your glutes.

If you need a time-efficient, full-body workout (and who doesn’t?), check out this Ultimate Sandbag workout from ACE Certified pro Elizabeth Andrews. This fun and challenging full-body, multi-planar training session can be done almost anywhere in less than 30 minutes.

Balance is a learned skill and the adage “practice makes permanent” best summarizes how to hone these skills. ACE Certified pro Lawrence Biscontini explains how anyone can improve their balance by performing six simple moves for just minutes a day.

Looking for ways to freshen up your boot-camp classes? Here is a great 45-minute circuit that both your regulars and newbies are sure to love. Designed for moderate-to-advanced clients, this workout includes appropriate regressions and extended rest periods to accommodate your less-experienced participants.

Designing movement-based exercise programs that challenge clients through a variety of patterns can improve coordination, movement skill and increase the energy expenditure of a workout. ACE Certified pro Pete McCall explains why knowing how to challenge clients with variability in their exercise programs can help them learn the safest, most effective solutions for safely executing the movements they have to perform on a regular basis.

In the final installment of this series focusing on the variables of exercise program design, ACE Certified pro Pete McCall explains why adequate rest intervals and post-training recovery periods may be the most important of all the variables. Here’s how you can enhance your clients’ efforts during training sessions by ensuring optimal rest and recovery periods.

Both the volume of a workout program and the frequency of training sessions play a critical role in stimulating muscle growth. If you have clients who want to train for muscle size or definition, volume and frequency are two essential variables to consider when designing an exercise program.

The summer months can be a challenge for fitness pros, with lower class numbers and cancellations nearly every day. How can you keep your energy and enthusiasm up in the face of dwindling participation? ACE Certified fitness pro Shannon Fable shares six tips that will help the summer fly by and leave you revved up and excited for fall.

One of the most common challenges faced by the average fitness enthusiast is reaching a plateau, where exercise no longer seems to have an effect and the body stops making any physiological changes. In part two of an ongoing series, ACE Certified Personal Trainer Pete McCall explains why this happens and how to adjust the variables of intensity and repetitions so you can help your clients reach their goals.

Summer is finally here, which means it’s time to start strengthening and toning up for the season. In this three-part workout series, exercises for the arms, core and legs will have you looking your best and feeling strong as you take advantage of all the fun activities summer has to offer. This week’s focus: core.

Reducing abdominal fat—a common goal of many who have an android body type—can be a challenge. While spot reduction remains a myth, there are specific workouts you can use with your clients that take into account their individual body types. In part 2 of this two-part series, Jacque Ratliff explains how to use moderate-intensity aerobic training and total-body resistance-training circuits to help clients reduce stubborn abdominal fat that could negatively affect their health.

Life and sport will make you move quickly at some point, so it makes sense to add some speed training to your workouts. Fitness pro Jonathan Ross explains why lifting quickly can be a great way to train for whatever life might throw at you and offers some great options and exercises to help you get started.

The Total Gym incline bodyweight trainer is a fun, effective piece of equipment that challenges proprioception and core stabilizers by incorporating three-dimensional movement and full range of motion in nearly every exercise. We recently caught up with Total Gym founder Tom Campanero to learn about the benefits of his unique product.

There are a number of ways to strengthen the muscles involved with stabilizing or moving the core, but the most effective exercises are the ones that train the core muscles when the body is standing up in a vertical position. ACE Certified Personal Trainer Pete McCall explains why training the core using standing exercises is so effective and offers a list of his favorite core exercises to help you get started.

The days are getting warmer, which means we get to finally peel away the heavy winter layers in favor of t-shirts and tank tops. If the winter has left you feeling less than toned, especially in the upper body, these six exercises will help you sport sexy, sculpted arms all season long.

Yoga is widely accepted as a great way to increase both strength and flexibility, while also yielding positive mind-body benefits. But not every pose is suitable or safe for every client. Here are five poses that require little modification and are a positive addition to any fitness program.

Obstacle course races like the Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder are hugely popular right now, attracting legions of fans throughout the country. That popularity represents a great opportunity for fitness professionals to offer race-specific training programs to would-be participants. Fitness pro Pete McCall explains the physical demands of these races and offers a sample training program you can use with your clients.

The ViPR® is a unique and versatile piece of equipment that is helping to popularize what many believe to be the future of fitness: loaded movement training. We recently caught up with creator Michol Dalcourt, who discussed the concept and benefits of loaded movement training and demonstrated some of the creative and effective exercises that can be done to build stability, mobility and strength throughout the entire body.

If you’re interested in strengthening your muscles, you don’t have to go to the gym. With a pair of dumbbells, you can a great total-body workout right at home. Here is a quick and effective dumbbell workout that will hit all the major muscle groups—not only will this routine help build strength, it could potentially increase metabolism, reduce body fat and improve your posture as well.

The NFL Combine, where college players perform a number of grueling tests to see if they have what it takes to compete at the professional level, is coming up soon. If you’re looking for some fun, interactive programming ideas for your personal-training clients or group-fitness participants, this event offers a great opportunity for your participants to “compete” against the best of the best by performing the same tests and drills.

Sandbells® by Hyperwear are changing the way personal trainers design exercise programs. We recently caught up with Master Trainer John Sinclair to learn how Sandbells can be used to create fun, challenging and engaging workout programs for clients.

The New Year is here and you are ready to commit! Change up your workout for 2014 by adding one or two non-consecutive days of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) to your exercise plan. This workout is efficient and adaptable, increases both muscle mass and metabolism, and, most importantly, is a lot of fun!

One of the best strategies for remaining injury free is to not get injured in the first place. Once the injury cycle has started, however, incidence of future injury increases dramatically. This is especially true of the low back. Fitness pro Chris McGrath explains six principles that will help your clients stabilize and strengthen the core, as well as increase mobility through the hips and thoracic spine.

Are you struggling with meeting the demands of a wide range of clientele, and wondering how you can be available to them at all hours of the day without giving up your own personal time? ACE-certified Fitness Professional Pete McCall has a solution for trainers facing this dilemma: client sharing. In fact, you may even be able to increase your income AND reduce your working hours by teaming up with other personal trainers and sharing clients.

With so many equipment options available, how do you choose which ones are best for your clients? ACE-certified Personal Trainer Doug Balzarini recommends sliders, which can be used in a variety of ways to challenge the entire body. With a pair of sliders and a little space, you can help your clients get in a great workout.

Newly released ACE-sponsored research confirmed that CrossFit can be a great way to get fit, but this high-intensity workout can also lead to injury if done incorrectly. Here are five important steps to ensure you have a great CrossFit experience and get the most out of your workouts.

Not every new fitness trend holds up under scrutiny, but heavy ropes have proven to be a fun and effective way to train the entire body. Fitness pro Doug Balzarini explains why heavy ropes have become a staple of his fitness toolbox, and offers a simple, yet challenging rope-based circuit workout that hits all the major muscle groups.

What does recovery mean and what can you do to help yourself and your clients recover from the physical demands of training? In this first installment of a two-part series, award-winning fitness pro Jonathan Ross answers all your questions about recovery—how much, how long, what is considered rest, etc.—so you can help your clients get the greatest possible benefits from the workouts you design for them.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is one of the hottest things in fitness right now, but it can seem out of reach for those who need to limit the stress on their joints. Fitness pro Stephanie Thielen explains why the pool might just be the perfect environment for HIIT workouts and offers up a fun and creative workout to help you start reaping the benefits of this highly effective training method.

Have you tried the TRX Rip Trainer yet? ACE Personal Trainer Pete McCall chats with creator Pete Holman about this versatile training tool and demonstrates a few fun and creative exercises that challenge everything from strength and balance to hand-eye coordination and power.

Science and technology advancements mean that our knowledge of fitness is constantly evolving. What was once standard practice, such as calculating maximum heart rate, can quickly become outdated and irrelevant. ACE Exercise Physiologist Dr. Mark Kelly explains how to apply some of the newer formulas for calculating heart rate and intensity, and how these new tools may make it easier to help your clients build a stronger base of fitness.

Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or just starting your career as a fitness professional, you’re probably on the lookout for new products and tools that can help you do your job better. Did you know that ACE recently created an entire website packed with information and services that can help you educate and provide much-needed support for your clients? Here is a sampling of some of the great free tools offered on ACEfit.com.

Could you be inadvertently scaring off your clients, simply by the names you use to describe the exercises you recommend? Fitness expert Jonathan Ross thinks so and has proposed a new set of rules for describing and naming exercises, which will help clear up confusion and prevent clients from feeling intimidated by exercises that sound more frightening than functional.

Don’t let your summer social life sabotage your hard-earned efforts this past winter and spring. Stay in shape all summer long with these high-intensity exercises designed to keep your muscles strong while burning a ton of calories.

Curious about the Power Plate and what benefits it might offer your clients? Master Trainer Derrick Price explains how the Power Plate works and why you might want to consider tapping into the many benefits of whole-body vibration training offered by this unique fitness device.

It is not uncommon for the Core-Tex to be mistaken for a balance trainer, but according to its inventor, Anthony Carey, it was specifically designed to provide a multi-dimensional reactive training challenge. In this interview, Carey explains his intentions behind developing the Core-Tex, and why engaging all of the fascia and connective tissue surrounding a joint simultaneously is so important.

Everyone, it seems, wants six-pack abs, but the most common exercise most people use to get them may be more effective at increasing back pain than building rock-hard abs. ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall explains why crunches can be a pain in the back and offers 5 great alternatives that not only sculpt the abs, but strengthen the entire core as well.

It’s that time of year when thoughts turn to vacations and days at the beach. This year, wouldn’t it be great to feel more confident in that cute bathing suit you bought, but never had the nerve to wear? Well, get started now with this awesome workout that will help you finally get the beach-ready body you’ve always wanted.

Many exercisers shy away from trying high-intensity interval training (HIIT) because they fear it will be too hard or might lead to injury. According to several studies, those fears may largely be unfounded. Not only is HIIT extremely effective for improving health and reducing the risk factors for metabolic syndrome, many exercisers appear to enjoy it much more than traditional continuous exercise. Need more convincing? Read on…

ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall recently sat down with BOSU Balance Trainer creator David Weck to discuss his exciting new WeckMethod training program. CoreFIST, which is just one component of this new program, focuses on the importance of optimal bone alignment. Here, Weck explains the principles behind this cutting-edge programming.

Are you content to be just another trainer, or do you aspire to something greater? Jonathan Ross shares his personal tips for success that he guarantees will not only help your clients find success and stay on track, but also elevate your status as a trusted and effective fitness professional.

In response to the growing urgency to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic and improve the physical-activity behaviors of America’s youth, the American Council on Exercise (ACE) has issued a statement on physical activity in school.

Are those New Year’s fitness resolutions already a distant memory? Did you get tired of slogging through the cold and ice only to wait in line for a piece of equipment or fight your way into an exercise class? Don’t worry—there is still time to get cranking with a workout program that will banish winter blahs and have you ready to bare those arms once the first flowers start poking their way up from the soil.

When it comes to making a workout more enjoyable, nothing quite matches the power of music. And the science proves it—from increasing intensity and reducing how difficult exercise feels, to enhancing explosiveness and lactate clearance during recovery, music improves nearly every aspect of working out.

When it comes to fitness, doing the same workout over and over again is not only boring, it may even lead to burnout. The beginning of the year is the perfect time to avoid this common trap by setting new goals and challenging yourself to new things. Here’s some great inspiration from top trainers on how you can switch things up in your fitness routine in 2013.

When it comes to creating a flat stomach while also reducing low-back pain, few exercises are more effective than the plank. Here are 5 great variations on the plank, which not only use the deep abdominal muscles (which helps flatten the stomach), but also recruit the hip, shoulder and upper-back muscles as well.

Looking for ways to maximize your workouts and shake things up a bit in 2013? Here are 5 great tips for rejuvenating your exercise routine, increasing your motivation and getting off those dreaded plateaus.

The BOSU® Balance Trainer is an ideal tool for helping your clients develop ideal dynamic balance. Here are five innovative exercises that require the body to work in a coordinated fashion for efficient and effective movement.

The New Year’s rush is almost here—that time of year when healthy resolutions send droves of people to the gym. But by mid-February or so, many of them have already abandoned their efforts. ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall offers some great tips for how you can maximize the New Year’s resolution rush and develop clients who will stay with you for the long haul.

Corrective exercise is not only growing in popularity, its potentially very profitable as well. Corrective exercise expert Justin Price explains how you can gain access to this lucrative field and help your clients minimize aches and pains and get back to the activities they love.

Trust. Honesty. Values. These are the building blocks for building a strong and effective relationship between trainers and clients, particularly those who are struggling with the complex issues related to being overweight or obese.

Are women really at a disadvantage when it comes to muscle development and fat reduction? ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall weighs in on a research study that looked at women’s ability to do pull-ups after following an upper-body strength training program.

Metabolic conditioning has become a popular buzzword in the industry, but is this type of training really only about gut-busting workouts and pushing your clients to their absolute limits? Not necessarily, according to ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall, who explains how to effectively—and safely—progress you clients’ programs to maximize the benefits they can achieve from metabolic-conditioning workouts.

Scientists have developed a test to determine how individuals are genetically programmed to respond to exercise, but knowing the answer could be a two-edged sword. Learn why this DNA test may be useful or harmful, depending on the expectations of the individual, and how fitness professionals can help clients use this information to their best advantage.

ACE Exercise Physiologist Mark Kelly responds to feedback about a new ACE-sponsored chest exercise study by discussing the reasoning behind the exercise choices used in the study as well as the inclination for individuals to put exercises into a given classification.

We often hear about the importance of strengthening your core, not only for aesthetic purposes, but for injury prevention. ACE Fitness Expert Chris McGrath discusses how core training helps prevent back injuries and, conversely, why a having a weak core may lead to injuries.

In part 1 of this series, Jonathan Ross discussed the tendency for fitness professionals to "ride the pendelum" from one extreme to the other in regards to abdominal and cardiorespiratory exercises. In Part 2, he will share more examples of this extreme thinking and consider some effective solutions for avoiding this behavior.

The human tendency to think and act in extremes is particularly common in the fitness industry. ACE Fitness Expert Jonathan Ross discusses the tendency for fitness professionals to “ride the pendulum” from one extreme to the other in regards to abdominal and cardiorespiratory exercises, and shares tips on how to avoid this behavior.

Understanding a client’s unique personality is essential for establishing rapport, and to help our trainers, ACE has created a Fitness Personality Quiz that determines and assess clients’ predominant personality styles. Check out what ACE Senior Fitness Consultant Dr. Michael Mantell has to say about his personal experience while taking the quiz, and how it can serve as a useful tool during your ACE-based assessment.

Most of us know there’s no absolute to follow in creating individualized exercise programs for our clients. The recipe differs every time due to their abilities, time constraints, attitude and a host of other factors. Despite the constant variables, there is a recipe to follow. Check out some tips from ACE Fitness Expert Chris McGrath on how you can create custom exercise programs for each client.

While incorporating yoga into personal training sessions may be daunting for those who do not have formal yoga education, blending these practices benefits the client, but also you, the trainer. ACE Pro Elizabeth Kovar discusses yoga basics, breathing techniques, education for trainers, and how to successfully incorporate it into your personal training sessions.

If you grew up in the 80s, then chances are you probably spent most of your teen or early college years trying to look like an old-school action hero. Who didn’t want arms like the Arnold back then? Check out a first-hand perspective from ACE Exercise Physiologist Pete McCall, whose philosophy about attaining all-around fitness has evolved significantly.

Millions of Americans struggle with their weight every day, and the old adage of “eat less, move more” isn’t solving anything. Find out what ACE Senior Consultant Natalie Digate Muth, MD, MPH, RD, has to say about how fitness professionals can help and the role they should serve in our battle to eliminate the obesity epidemic.

Body-monitoring devices are rising in popularity among clients in recent years, especially those who need a bit more help deciphering their daily activities. Check out how you can capitalize on that interest by using it to increase their accountability and boost your business in other areas.

If you’re looking for an opportunity to appeal to your more adventurous clients, try developing a one-on-one or small-group training plan specific to “mud runs.” Growing in popularity across the country, these grimy obstacle courses attract athletes at all levels – and just the occasional guy (or girl) that likes to get dirty.

The weather is getting warmer, the sun is staying out later, and it’s more pleasant to spend time outdoors enjoying various recreational activities. If you’re like me you may cringe a little bit during this time of year because in my experience when clients start picking up their favorite outdoor activities after a long winter indoors, more often than not they jump right back into their recreational pastime at the same intensity as when they left off in the fall.

Although the current trend in fitness is to “train your grandmothers like your athletes,” if that idea isn’t approached thoughtfully and carefully, it can potentially be a terrible mistake. Training older adults like you train more competitive athletes is a great concept that I fully support, as long as trainers use proper movement and exercise progressions. The huge problem with putting it into practice is that proper exercise progressions are often thrown out in favor of tire flips.

Due to their versatility and effectiveness, kettlebells are becoming more of a staple for trainers working with clients of all abilities. While they’re a great way to incorporate whole-body movement, trainers who’ve never used them before should make sure they know what they’re doing before they whip them into client programs. Here are a few things to keep in mind before you begin incorporating kettlebells into your workouts.

The previous two posts addressed how understanding the Functional Movement and Resistance Training components of the ACE Integrated Fitness Training® (ACE IFT®) model can help you market your services when you’re asked about many popular exercise trends. This post will address how to use the cardiorespiratory training progressions of the ACE IFT® to appeal to potential clients when they ask you about popular exercise programs such as Zumba®, indoor cycling or Insanity®.

Mom may not have always been right, but she had one thing down. Keeping your head up and your back straight is sound advice for you and your clients. Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as it sounds, especially when most of your clients spend 8 hours a day at a desk staring at a computer.

How many times have you been asked the best way to develop a six-pack? If you’re like me I always chuckle a little and inform the inquisitor that he or she already has a six-pack – the problem is that it’s usually being stored in a cooler. I go on to inform him or her that core training requires a lot more work than one or two exercises and that I can help them move toward their goals, but it will require some commitment on their part.

The weather's warming up, so you and your clients may be wondering how to get chiseled abs. Author of "Abs Revealed" and ACE Senior Consultant Personal Training, Jonathan Ross, knows exactly how to work all your abs — not just the main ones. In this video series, Ross shares six innovative ab exercises, including two never-before seen ones shared exclusively for ACE's readers.

In my career, I have definitely had bouts of staleness and burnout. What I learned is that once I started feeling that way, then it was time to look for a continuing education workshop to stimulate my gray matter and break me out of the rut. Taking the time to learn anatomy and movement mechanics will help you to add variety and excitement to your exercise programs, creating more enjoyment for both you and your clients.

Many people falsely assume that anyone can teach an indoor cycling class as long as they are in shape, have a great personality and spend a ton of time on their tunes. Plenty of fitness enthusiasts are diving in because, let’s face it, from the outside it looks like all you have to do is pedal, push and repeat! How hard can it be? Well, that’s just the thing. It’s not hard to teach a cycling class but if you truly want to provide the best experience, there's more than meets the eye.

Most lifting programs are incomplete. And it’s because they are just that — lifting programs. Most weightlifting exercises involve lifting, directly opposing gravity. But in life, we lift, shift, and twist things we hold, even if it’s just ourselves. We move through gravity and so, have to deal with momentum. If you add some shifting and twisting, your “lifting” program can now provide a more complete movement experience. See some examples.

In part 1, I discussed how the first two faces of the ACE IFT™ model — Stability and Mobility, and Movement — related to yoga. This time, we’ll take a look at P90X and Crossfit, and how the Load and Performance phases of the ACE IFT Model are related to the popular workout trends.

Small group training has been gaining popularity because it’s an affordable, fun way for clients to take advantage of a trainer’s expertise at a lower financial investment — all while keeping the fun and competitiveness of a group dynamic. How does it differ from one-on-one personal training, and how can you effectively design programs? Find out.

Increase the intensity of your workouts by training like a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. Doug Balzarini shows you his top five favorite exercises that he uses when training elite athletes. With upper-body pushing and pulling, lower-body and rotational core movements, these exercises will make you sweat.

As fitness professionals, it’s inevitable that people ask for our opinions about popular exercise programs — ranging from programs featured in the most recent late-night infomercials to the centuries-old practice of yoga. Answering these questions by applying the ACE IFT Model to these trends will help market your skills as a personal trainer.

The recent article about the fittest athletes has prompted some interesting discussions between some colleagues and me. The discussions have centered on the fact that the article addresses many components of fitness such as cardiorespiratory endurance, strength, power and agility but leaves out an important component critical for athletic success — reactivity.

Core training is one of the most popular and often misused phrases in the fitness world today. For some people, core training means doing crunches until their abs cramp. For others, core training means doing all sorts of complicated moves on various pieces of equipment that look better suited for a circus than a gym. The big question is “which way is the right way to do effective core training?”

Dating back to the early 1980s, the practice of static stretching before exercise was widely believed to prevent or reduce the risk of injury, and to promote performance. Thirty years later and after volumes of research, confusion still exists whether it offers potential benefits before exercise. From a logical perspective, tissue stiffness and a lack in range of motion (ROM) both contribute to injury, and static stretching is correlated with both a reduction in tissue stiffness and an improved

Aerobic Interval (AI) training has emerged as a viable alternative to traditional steady-state aerobic (SS) exercise, a long-standing staple for improving cardiovascular fitness. What AI offers over SS is the ability to introduce frequent changes in exercise intensity to increase the overall volume of overload before inducing fatigue (i.e., by allowing appropriate recoveries between work intervals). While Tabata and colleagues (1996) demonstrated that high-intensity interval training (HIIT) tra

Aerobic Interval (AI) training has emerged as a viable alternative to traditional steady-state aerobic (SS) exercise, a long-standing staple for improving cardiovascular fitness. What AI offers over SS is the ability to introduce frequent changes in exercise intensity to increase the overall volume of overload before inducing fatigue (i.e., by allowing appropriate recoveries between work intervals). While Tabata and colleagues (1996) demonstrated that high-intensity interval training (HIIT) tra

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